Sarah Grace
Chapter Introduction
What do we do when someone we know or love dies? How are we supposed to feel and act? How do we respectfully honour the deceased and support the bereaved? Answers to these questions are usually dictated by culture and religion. Death-related beliefs and practices are part of every culture, but how we deal with death is diverse. Although post-death events typically involve honouring the dead and supporting the bereaved (i.e., an individual, a family, or a community), these events can take a variety of forms (e.g., funerals, wakes, celebrations of life, etc.). Some are celebratory in nature, some are highly emotive, while others are solemn and reserved. This chapter provides an overview of some cultural and religious death-related rituals, ceremonies, and practices.
Upon completing this chapter, students will be able to:
- Understand Psychological Theories Related to Death Rituals, Grief, and Mourning
- Identify and explain key psychological theories that provide insight into the functions and mechanisms of death rituals, grief, and mourning practices, including:
- Continuing Bonds Theory – Explore how ongoing connections with the deceased are maintained through memories, rituals, and symbolic acts, such as altars or commemorative events like Día de los Muertos.
- Meaning-Making and Post-Traumatic Growth – Recognize how individuals construct meaning from loss, integrate it into life narratives, and foster resilience through rituals, potentially leading to post-traumatic growth.
- Dual Process Model of Coping with Bereavement – Explain how individuals oscillate between loss-oriented and restoration-oriented stressors and how rituals can facilitate this balancing act in the grieving process.
- Attachment Theory – Analyze the impact of attachment styles on grief and how rituals provide structured ways to process the loss of attachment figures.
- Disenfranchised Grief – Understand how grief unacknowledged by society (e.g., for stigmatized deaths) can be validated through ritual, thereby offering needed communal support.
- Identify and explain key psychological theories that provide insight into the functions and mechanisms of death rituals, grief, and mourning practices, including:
- Describe the Role of Death Rituals in Processing Loss, Coping with Grief, and Finding Meaning
- Articulate how death rituals, such as funerals and memorials, serve as structured avenues for individuals and communities to process emotions and find solace following a loss.
- Examine Cross-Cultural and Religious Variations in Funeral and Mourning Practices
- Compare diverse mourning rituals and death practices across cultures and religions, understanding how these rituals provide meaning and support in unique cultural contexts.
- Analyze the Concept of Professional Mourning and Its Role in Societal Death Practices
- Discuss the practice of professional mourning within various cultures and its psychological and social functions.
- Recognize Cultural and Communal Functions of Mourning Practices and Ceremonies
- Evaluate the psychological, social, and cultural roles of death-related rituals, focusing on how they validate loss, promote social support, and foster collective healing.
Questions to Think About When Completing Chapter Materials
- What death-related tradition(s) do you have in your family? What would happen if someone in your family chose not to follow the practices dictated by your culture and/or religion?
- Which death-related practice(s) do you find most interesting? What makes them interesting?
- What is role of death rituals and ceremonies for the bereaved and the community?
- What are some similarities among the funeral rites and rituals of different cultures and/or and religions?
